WITH IMPROVED drugs, proper care and treatment, people with HIV are living longer and stronger lives while caring for themselves and others.

But even with this encouraging news, a dangerous trend is emerging when it comes to an often-ignored segment of the HIV and AIDS population: women and children. As we approach World AIDS Day on Dec. 1, statistics show more women and children are being affected by this deadly disease than ever before.

Most frustrating of all, the problem is generally preventable through changes in behavior, increased use of safer-sex practices, testing, basic health care and other forms of prevention.

It’s still true that more men than women have HIV worldwide. But statistically, women are catching up fast. World AIDS Day organizers say women with HIV may soon outnumber men with HIV if new HIV infections continue at their current rate.

Worldwide, women account for nearly half of all new HIV infections and almost two-thirds of those among young people, with female infections rising in almost every region. For women, the most common ways to contract HIV are still by having sex with a man who has HIV and by sharing infected needles.

In the U.S. alone, more than 1 million Americans have HIV/AIDS. According to the Centers for Disease Control, women comprise between 120,000 and

160,000 of these cases, with one in four of them unaware they have the virus. Even more alarming, many of these women are in their child-bearing years.

Without treatment or education, about one in four pregnant women with HIV will transmit the virus to their babies, either while the baby is being delivered or through breast-feeding. Mother-to-child transmission is the most common way children become infected with HIV, accounting for nearly all AIDS cases in U.S. children.

Fortunately, a group of drugs called antiretrovirals reduces HIV transmission. If women take these drugs before and during birth, and their babies are given drugs after birth, the odds of spreading HIV drop to less than 2 percent.

Regularly testing pregnant women for HIV and providing antiretroviral drugs if they are infected dramatically reduces the number of children born with HIV. In 1992, 855 children in the U.S. In 2005, only 57 children developed AIDS, a decline of 93 percent. developed AIDS.

Since the beginning of the epidemic, some 8,460 children who contracted HIV from their mothers have been diagnosed with AIDS. Nearly 5,000 of these children have died.

Today, there’s hope. Like their mothers, children born with HIV are also benefiting from early diagnosis and better treatment. Many are living longer and healthier lives due to these life-saving drugs and other preventive measures.

Preventing HIV is not complicated. Get tested as soon as you’re sexually active. Don’t use IV drugs or share needles. Abstain or practice safer sex. Pregnant women should be tested and seek prenatal and postnatal care. With preventative care, you and your health care provider can fight and manage this disease and protect your child.

Most of all, get educated, and don’t be shy about discussing these issues. It’s better to talk about sensitive subjects with a doctor, nurse, friend or loved one than to let silence and complacency lead to infection.

Dr. Sam Ho is executive vice president and chief medical officer for UnitedHealthcare in Cypress. For information, visit worldAIDSday.org.